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Tag: M&E industry

  • Ormax Xpressive: Get ready for facial coding

    Ormax Xpressive: Get ready for facial coding

    MUMBAI: Expressions say it all, and researchers for long now have been reading people’s faces to know it all. A smile, a frown, a grin and many more can’t hide the real feelings. Keeping this in mind, researchers are now using facial coding to investigate how viewers react and behave towards TV shows.

     

    In India, Ormax Media which has launched various products to help the Media & Entertainment industry has launched a new one – Ormax Xpressive. The newest variant from the house is an automated face coding based content testing tool. It is powered by RealEyes, a Europe-based outfit who are a global thought leader in this technology.

     

     “Using Xpressive, Indian companies can test video content ranging from five seconds to 50 minutes. Unlike regular research, where consumers are shown the video and then asked a series of questions, this technology captures real behavourial data. It measures the second-by-second response of the audience. TV channels can use it for promo testing and pilot testing, while movies can use it for trailer testing,” highlights Ormax Media CEO Shailesh Kapoor.

     

    What was the thought process behind launching the product, Kapoor says, “Ad testing and video content testing is a common need in the Indian M&E industry. The nature of the industry is such that there is rarely any time to do such studies, because the results are needed within 1-2 days. Ormax Xpressive gives real-time responses, and hence, is highly relevant to the industry.”

     

    Also, since it is based on real response and not claimed response, its output is more credible. “The level of detailing facial coding data can reveal is extraordinary, as you get a second-by-second response, not just an overall response. We believe use of technology for better and more effective consumer research is important, and Ormax Xpressive is an example of our belief,” adds Kapoor.

     

    The media insights firm piloted the product in India in February 2014 for which the technology comes from RealEyes who has a team of scientists dedicated to the best interpretation of the facial response data. “Culturally, India and the West are different, and the expression of emotions can vary. Hence, India benchmarks are critical to build. We bring in that value, as well as the ability to interpret the findings given our strong understanding of the media and entertainment consumers in India,” points out Kapoor.

     

    The beauty of the technology is that it does not require any gadgetry. It is entirely over the webcam. Respondents watch the video and their facial expressions and captured via the webcam and then analysed in the backend by the facial coding software. Results are ready within 10 minutes.

     

    The six basic emotions measured are happy, sad, scared, confused, disgusted and surprised. Then, there are derived parameters, the most important one of which is engagement, which measures the overall engagement levels of the content. All parameters are measured at a second-to-second level, and can be seen by demographic cuts, such as market, age, gender and SEC. Ormax Xpressive studies can be done in two ways: a test link can be sent to respondents who can take the test via their webcam, or a Central Location Testing is conducted, where respondents are invited to a venue and administered the test there via a webcam-enabled computer.

     

    The media insights firm is targeting all media and entertainment companies, who have video content for the new product. It will be used by TV channels and film studios.

     

    However, there are a few media analysts who believe that though it is a good initiative and has its merits, there might be a few demerits attached with it as well. For instance, they believe that the state of mind of the respondent will play an important role in a person’s facial expressions. “Today, social media listening is more important. How well this product will help the industry, we will have to wait and watch,” says a media observer.

     

    Another media analyst agrees and adds, “The results will be subjective and hence, cannot be depended upon solely. If it compliments other parameters then it will definitely be put to a good use.”

     

    As for the future, the firm believes that the importance of research will only continue to grow as the market evolves. Technology will play a role in improving the output of research and making it more reliable and actionable. “Technology should not be used for the sake of using technology, but for a better output,” concludes Kapoor.

  • M&E industry can grow much more than it is right now: Sanjay Gupta

    M&E industry can grow much more than it is right now: Sanjay Gupta

    MUMBAI: Star India CEO Sanjay Gupta while talking during the final session of day one at the 15th edition of FICCI Frames 2014 — “Talking Numbers: Hard Facts about M &E’s Economic Contribution” — said that it seems that “as the media and entertainment (M&E) industry we have really forgotten how big we truly are, we are not just about showbiz. I believe we are undervaluing ourselves and instead of being a $15 billion industry we should be somewhere around $ 60 billion (that is, four times).”

     

    Gupta thinks that the industry has a potential to grow at the rate of 15 per cent, but it is rather doing just a shade below five per cent. “The industry, comprising of the stakeholders and the regulators, is having a very myopic view on how can we all come together to serve the consumer with what they want,” he remarked.

     

    He also brought to the fore the hurdles that a new player in the market can come across. “If I want to introduce a product which is of superior quality than what other products are offering, I have regulatory restrictions on the pricing not to mention the pressing taxation on the content,” he said.

     

    The session, which was anchored by Motion Picture Association (MPA) India MD Uday Singh, brought up many major points about the contribution of the M&E Industry in the country’s economy and the hurdles that need to be overcome to improve the numbers.

     

    Besides Gupta, the panel comprised Viacom 18 Media group CEO Sudhanshu Vats, Disney India MD Siddharth Roy Kapur and Aditya Birla Group chief economist Dr Ajit Ranade who underlined the improvements that need to be brought in regulations, infrastructure, cutting down on piracy and much more.

     

    It was Viacom 18 Media group CEO Sudhanshu Vats, who called attention to the issues associated to digitization. He said: “With an expected growth of 21 per cent in subscription revenues and 15 per cent in advertising revenue by the end of phase three and four of the digitisation, the future for the M&E industry looks bright. But the pressing issue that needs to be addressed is though 40 odd cities have been seeded with boxes are they also addressable?”

     

    However, he thinks the future is bright for subscription driven markets with the oncoming of 100 per cent ad free channels like HBO Hits and HBO Defined.

     

    The panelists also discussed the contribution of the three major players in the Indian movie business — Hindi, Tamil and Telugu cinema — that contribute nearly 43 per cent, 19 per cent and 14 per cent respectively to the total revenue generation from the film industry. Singh remarked that with nearly 1.8 million people working in this industry, it is certainly one of the important contributors to the GDP of the country.

     

    Disney India MD Siddharth Roy Kapur said: “As far as the film industry is concerned, the three major areas of concern are creativity, infrastructure and piracy. Once we as a community get together and address these perils, I am sure the world will become a much happier place.”

     

    According to Kapur, the top 10 box-office hits contribute to nearly 50 per cent or more to the overall collections from the film sector alone, and the top seven male stars contribute to 45 per cent of the year’s overall box-office collections.

     

    Singh also brought up the topic of distribution and ARPUs (Average Revenue Per User), stating that with better addressability and packaging the ARPU will witness a substantial rise.

     

    Aditya Birla Group chief economist Dr. Ajit Ranade concluded the discussion with some mind-numbing numbers and facts. “The industry is currently going through a rapid transformation and the contribution to the overall GDP will see improvement in coming time but we need to take into account that the government is always struggling with a fiscal deficit, thus reducing taxation is not the final resolution.”

     

    “The right way forward is to move towards a micro payment format where the consumer pays for all the facilities he/she uses this will reduce a lot of disparities and only go onto strengthen the growth of the market and further contribute to the economy,” he concluded.

  • M&E industry need to grow at more than 12%

    M&E industry need to grow at more than 12%

    MUMBAI: The Media & Entertainment industry needs to get its act together to grow at a rate of more than 12.5 per cent to be on par with other sunshine sectors, said The Walt Disney Company India MD Ronnie Screwvala.

    Srewvala said the India M&E sector has success written all over it provided the industry comes out of its complacency. He also said that innovation and disruption will be the norm.

    "The industry is projected to grow at 12 per cent. However this growth is not enough as other sunshine sectors are growing at a much faster pace," said Disney India‘s head honcho.

    Screwvala was convinced that India has the creative talent that would help it take the next big leap.
    He also said that digitisation will change the dynamics of the broadcast industry. The early results of digitisation has been encouraging, he said.

    The benefits of digitisation will only trickle down after two to three years.

    "We have been waiting for digitisation for 20 years and it has finally happened," he said in a closing keynote address at Ficci Frames.

    Joining debate with the industry on ratings system, Srewvala said the solution for a robust television ratings agency lies within the industry. The fact that almost 70 per cent of television households are outside the current ratings system is a matter of concern, he added.

    On an optimistic note, he said that TAM is now covering more homes than it was covering earlier.

    New media is a huge opportunity for the industry. However, the key is to find the right business model. India is one of the biggest mobile phone markets, which is also encouraging.

    A Rs 1,000 crore blockbuster is not out of reach in future, he asserted.

    Print, unlike other markets, is still growing in India at a healthy pace. The India DTH market is the biggest in the world. However, monetisation remains a concern.

    On the contentious issue of censorship, an optimistic Screwvala said that India‘s track record is still commendable. The need, though, is to take it to the level of matured democracies.

    Regional market‘s, he said, had shown phenomenal growth and are the future growth markets. Understanding consumer will also be key to growth.

  • M&E industry lacks reliable data: Uday Shankar

    M&E industry lacks reliable data: Uday Shankar

    MUMBAI: For a $15 billion media and entertainment industry, the lack of reliable data is one of the major factors pulling down growth.

    Star India CEO and chairman of the Ficci Media & Entertainment Committee Uday Shankar wondered how a fledgling industry could function without availability of acceptable data.

    Urging stakeholders of M&E industry to set their house in order, Shankar said that there is lack of reliable data on audience measurement across verticals of the media and entertainment sector.

    "How can this industry function without a shared and non-controversial view of the most basic facts? Numbers are supposed to be the foundations of rational business decisions. How can we make decisions when professionals in the business of numbers can’t get their numbers straight?," he questioned.

    The lack of reliable data is not limited to TAM, Shankar elaborated. "As a TV executive, I am surprised sometimes how I am even able to function. I do not know enough about my viewers – in fact, I don’t even know how many of them are there. There are 140 million cable and satellite homes but the measured universe is 62 million households."

    Shankar also said that the country’s premier media agencies differ on a fact as basic as the size of the advertising market.

    He also pointed out that it‘s not just the television industry that suffers from lack of reliable data. In fact, the whole industry across verticals is functioning without proper data.

    "The ambiguity in data for other sectors of the media and entertainment is no less. For instance, no film producer seems to know accurately how many people actually bought tickets to watch his film," Shankar averred.

    Shankar also exhorted that there is a need for a change of mindset among stakeholders to take the industry to the next level.

    The M&E industry is a real economic enterprise and not just a vehicle of glitz and glamour, one that has the potential to solve the problem of unemployment by creating new jobs.

    "The time has come for all of us to make sure that it is not just industry status that we seek; it is a fundamental change in mindset," Shankar said, while delivering his keynote address today at Ficc-Frames 2013, an annual media and entertainment conclave held in Mumbai.

    He also said that the M&E industry is capable of creating employment and wealth much faster than most other sectors and has the ability to be a force multiplier, like it is in most countries.

    "It is particularly relevant in India because it can be an employment generator without massive public investments and without being hampered by the deficiencies of public infrastructure. Just to put things in perspective, as a $15 billion industry, we employ over 6 million people. This can be so much more significant and meaningful," he said.

    He also bemoaned the fact that the industry despite the huge potential has not got the adequate support from government.

    A case in point, Shankar said, was the government‘s recent decision to increase customs duty on Set Top Boxes, notwithstanding the fact that the cost of STBs will go up at a time when the country is moving towards mandatory cable television digitisation and impose withholding taxes on content rights

    "The lens often used to look at this industry is largely one of glamour and propaganda and the biggest debate is on how to control and contain it. As a result, the growth of M&E has not been supported by policy and regulatory initiatives," he added.

    Emphasising that the industry is facing an imminent talent crunch, Shankar said: “We hide under the pretense of creativity and have convinced ourselves that creativity gives us the license to be informal and chaotic. It is this informality and chaos that has seeped into our approach to spotting and grooming talent. This is dangerous. We must realise that discipline and formality are not antithetical to creativity and if anything they are necessary ingredients to fostering the creative process.”

    Shankar said efforts to curb free speech in a robust democracy like India is one of the biggest challenges that can potentially derail the industry from its trajectory. “When Satyamev Jayate points to weaknesses in the medical system, doctors are offended. When Jolly LLB creates a courtroom satire, lawyers are offended. Even when a precocious teenager posts a comment on Facebook, some people start baying for her blood,” he lamented.

    “What is interesting to me is that we all agree that the role of media is to question the status quo. But with the right to question must come the right to provoke and the right to offend.”

    Shankar also set out the ambitious Rs 10 billion target for Indian movies. "We should work hard and strive for such success. If the stakeholders can come together, a lot can be achieved. We have seen that in the case of digitisation," Shankar said.